JAMA : the journal of the American Medical Association
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To evaluate the effects of reorganizing physician resources in a medical intensive care unit (MICU), we studied the impact of these changes in patients with septic shock. Patients were compared during two consecutive 12-month periods: (1) an interval in which faculty without critical care medicine (CCM) training supervised the MICU (before CCM, n = 100) and (2) following staffing with physicians formally trained in CCM (after CCM, n = 112). Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation scores were utilized to compare severity of illness and were similar for each group (29 +/- 11 before CCM vs 28 +/- 10 after CCM). ⋯ There was no significant difference in the frequency of use of mechanical ventilation (83% vs 87%), although pulmonary artery catheters (48% vs 64%) and arterial catheters (24% vs 73%) were employed more frequently after CCM. The number of subspecialty consultations and MICU and hospital length of stay were similar for both intervals. We conclude that the implementation of dedicated staffing by CCM physicians in a university hospital MICU was associated with a favorable impact on patients with septic shock.
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Comparative Study
The impact of diabetes on survival following myocardial infarction in men vs women. The Framingham Study.
The impact of diabetes on recurrent myocardial infarction (MI) and fatal coronary heart disease was examined in survivors of an initial MI using 34-year follow-up data in the Framingham Study. Among nondiabetic patients, the risk of fatal coronary heart disease was significantly lower in women compared with men (relative risk, 0.6). In the presence of diabetes, however, the risk of recurrent MI in women was twice the risk in men. ⋯ Furthermore, when cardiac failure developed, 25% of diabetic women experienced a recurrent MI or fatal coronary event, more than doubling the rate when diabetes was absent. We conclude that in the diabetic patient who survives an MI, cardiac failure is a common occurrence, warranting early detection and vigorous management in periods of convalescence and follow-up. In addition, when cardiac failure appears, control of diabetes assumes added importance, particularly in women, where its effect on survivorship is considerable.